Blast hits Turkmen party in Kirkuk, Iraq

An Iraqi police officer looks at the damage after the headquarters of the National Turkmen Front party was blown up by unidentified assailants yesterday.

Blast hits Turkmen party in Kirkuk, Iraq

Monday, October 17, 2011

KIRKUK/ŞIRNAK

Insurgents in northernIraqblew up the headquarters of the Iraqi Turkmen Front party in the disputed, ethnically mixed city of Kirkuk yesterday, according to Iraqi police and a deputy.

The attackers planted two bombs at the party’s headquarters in central Kirkuk, destroying the building and severely damaging neighboring buildings, a police official said on condition of anonymity. There were no reports of casualties in the attack. The Iraqi Turkmen Front, which is part of the Sunni-backed Iraqiya bloc, holds four seats in the Iraqi parliament. Arshad al-Salehi, the president of the party, said the attack was part of a campaign of violence against Turkmens in Kirkuk.

Meanwhile, another explosion was reported at the Kirkuk-Yumurtalık crude oil pipeline near the southeastern province of Şırnak’s İdil district yesterday. Officials reported a gas leakage, but no fire was reported. The reason of the explosion had not yet been determined.